The Worthies of Devon

Author: John Prince
Published: 1810
Provider: Internet Archive

Note the typo in the title - should be "Dumnonii Orientales Illustres".

Athletic Field (now Amory Park) Family Fete - 1960s

Felix Aquarius - A Musical by Tiverton School - 1983

Around Tiverton - 1991

Freedom of Tiverton Hermes Procession - 1960s

Members of Parliament for Tiverton Since 1885

Here is a summary of the elected members for Tiverton each year since the 1885 general election, following the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 when Tiverton was reduced from two members to one, and the Representation of the People Act 1884 which widened the suffrage.

* = General election
† = By-election

Year	Member	Party
1885*	Sir William Walrond	Conservative
1886*†
1887
1888
1889
1890
1891
1892*
1893
1894
1895*
1896
1897
1898
1899
1900*
1901
1902†
1903
1904
1905
1906*	Hon. William Walrond	Conservative
1907
1908
1909
1910*
1911
1912
1913
1914
1915†	Charles Carew	Conservative
1916
1917
1918*
1919
1920
1921
1922*	Herbert Sparkes	Conservative
1923*†	Sir Francis Dyke Acland, Bt	Liberal
1924*	Gilbert Acland-Troyte	Conservative
1925
1926
1927
1928
1929*
1930
1931*
1932
1933
1934
1935*
1936
1937
1938
1939
1940
1941
1942
1943
1944
1945*	Derick Heathcoat-Amory	Conservative
1946
1947
1948
1949
1950*
1951*
1952
1953
1954
1955*
1956
1957
1958
1959*
1960†	Robin Maxwell-Hyslop	Conservative
1961
1962
1963
1964*
1965
1966*
1967
1968
1969
1970*
1971
1972
1973
1974*
1975
1976
1977
1978
1979*
1980
1981
1982
1983*
1984
1985
1986
1987*
1988
1989
1990
1991
1992*	Angela Browning	Conservative
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997*
1998
1999
2000
2001*
2002
2003
2004
2005*
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010*	Neil Parish	Conservative
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015*
2016
2017*
2018
2019*
2020
2021
2022†	Richard Foord	Liberal Democrats

27/06/2022 Update: LibDem win noted at the recent by-election.

Concerns Raised Over Gotham House Alterations

Gotham House, Tiverton, Devon
Lobsterthermidor / CC BY-SA 3.0

An article on DevonLive (04/04/2022) outlines concerns from the Tiverton Civic Society over reports that the original 18th century doors leading from the staircase in the Grade II* listed Gotham House have been removed and sold. The society has issued a letter of objection (Word document format).

Gotham House was rebuilt by clothing merchant and Mayor of Tiverton, George Davey (1690–1746), following the Great Fire of 1731. George Davey also owned Gotham Farmhouse - another Grade II* listed property.

Although now unconnected, both Gotham House and Gotham Farmhouse are currently on the market.

Charitable Trust To Restore The Leat

"Castle Street, Tiverton"
RA Series - c.1958

DevonLive reports (06/04/2022) that a charitable trust is to be setup to preserve Tiverton’s historic leat. In previous reports it has been suggested that a sum of £100,000 may be required to get the leat flowing again. A popular Facebook group was setup in 2019 to monitor the situation and lobby to get it flowing again, along with a petition.

Former Police Station Saved From Demolition

DevonLive reports (30/12/2021) the good news that the old Police Station on The Avenue has been saved from demolition. It was going to be knocked down to make way for five detached houses, but the application went to appeal and was subsequently refused.

Planning inspector David Wyborn, in his report, stated: “I appreciate that the building is deteriorating and some local residents would wish to see the site redeveloped to address this matter.

“However, I have found that the scheme would involve the loss of a non-designated heritage asset which has significance, to a medium level of importance, in terms of its heritage value.

“The loss of significance would be substantial and the recording of the building, while best practice, would not weigh materially in favour of its loss. The original Victorian building makes a valuable contribution to the character and appearance of the area.

The full Appeal Decision can be read here.

Buscombe: Or, A Michaelmas Goose

Illustration from Harper's Magazine - 1889

In the December 1889 edition of Harper's Magazine is the R.D. Blackmore tale in verse Buscombe: Or, A Michaelmas Goose. The illustration above from the magazine is instantly recognisable as the entrance to old Blundell's, shown below.

In 2020, local author and publisher, Douglas Rice, published a new edition of the tale, as reported by In Your Area.